TNPL is an acknowledged leader in the technology of manufacture of paper from bagasse – the sugar cane residue.Started with an initial capacity of 90,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) on a single Paper Machine, the Mill doubled the capacity to 180,000 tonnes per annum in the year 1995 by addition of one more Paper Machine.Under the Mill Development Plan (MDP) completed during May 2008, the pulp production capacity has been increased from 520 tpd to 720 tpd.The pulp being produced by TNPL, in post-MDP is Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF).Along with this, the upgrade of the Paper Machines has resulted in reaching the paper production capacity to 2,45,000tpa.TNPL completed the Mill Expansion Plan (MEP) in December 2010 to raise the mill capacity to 400,000 tpa from January 2011, by installing a third Paper machine (PM #3) and simultaneously increased the pulp production capacity to 880tpd.

Having successfully completed the MEP, the mill has now embarked upon a green field project to install a double coated multilayer paper board machine.The pre-project activities have commenced for this project from May 2013. The target set for commissioning of the project is May 2016.

OTHER KEY PROJECTS UNDER IMPLEMENTATION:

Revamping of Steam and Power system (RSPS):

The Company is implementing a project to replace the 3 low pressure (44 ata) Boilers of 60 tph each installed during 1984 with a new energy efficient and environmental friendly Circulating Fluidised Bed Combustion (CFBC) Boiler of 125 tph steam generation capacity at 105 ata pressure rating. In addition, the Company has proposed to replace the two old Turbo Generator (TG) sets with a new TG set of 41 MW capacity to augment the in-house power generation for meeting the additional power requirement.The project features installation of an Air Cooled condenser for the TG in place of conventional water cooled condenser, in order to conserve water.The total capital outlay for the project is Rs 150 crore. The commissioning of the TG is planned during end September 2013 and that of the CFBC Boiler in October 2013. The RSPS will enable the mill to fully meet the internal demands including the new facilities created like LSFM, DIP, PCC and GCC plants besides exporting surplus power to the Grid.

De-inking Plant :

To meet the additional pulp requirement in the post- MEP, the Company has initiated steps to install a state- of-the-art Deinking plant of capacity 300 tpd, at an estimated capital outlay of Rs.174 Crore. Commissioning trials for the plant commenced from 3rd week of June 2013. The plant was commissioned on 1st July 2013 and is in continuous operation since then. The commissioning of DIP line is an important mile stone in the history of the company. The DIP line gives tremendous flexibility in managing the raw material supply chain to meet the annual production targets set for the mill. Further the DIP line represents the green technology as it is the least polluting when compared with the virgin fiber pulp lines like the chemical bagasse and the hard wood pulp mills. The state of the art 3 loop, 2 disperser DIP line is also a trend setter in India, for producing high quality printing and writing paper from recycled paper. The DIP line will be an enabler for future growth of the company.

On-site Precipitated Calcium Carbonate (PCC) plant

Following the switching over to alkaline sizing in the Stock preparation, the paper machines started using Precipitated Calcium Carbonate (PCC) as the wet end filler. In view of the huge requirement of PCC, the Company has proposed to install an on-site PCC plant of 60,000 tpa capacity on Built, Own and Operate (BOO) basis in the Mill premises. The plant will be established by OMYA International AG, Switzerland at a capital outlay of Rs.30 crore. The Environmental clearance for the project is received . The project is scheduled to go on stream from March 2014.

On-site Wet Ground Calcium Carbonate (WGCC) plant

While the company continues to use PCC, trials were conducted for increasing the ash content in the paper.Towards this, a combination of GCC and PCC was tried out, to improve the surface properties of paper in an economical way.As the results are found encouraging the company has been using GCC, which is currently being purchased in powder form.Considering the huge quantity of GCC requirement the company has initiated action for establishing an on-site GCC plant, on the same lines of PCC plant. An agreement on BOO basis has been entered into and the plant is scheduled for commissioning by November 2013.

Lime Sludge & Fly Ash Management (600 tpd Cement Plant)

The lime sludge generation from the Recovery Cycle and the Fly Ash generated from the power boilers are issues of concern in solid waste management of the mill. An innovative solution of combining these two wastes and converting them into high grade cement has been drawn through installation of a 600 tpd cement manufacturing plant abutting the Mill premises. Environmental Clearance and the Consent to Establish were received from Department of MOEF / GoTN and theTamil Nadu Pollution Control Board.This project is undertaken at a capital outlay of Rs.100 crore. The project has commenced the commercial operations from January 2013.